The Chuck ToddCast

Chuck Todd and J.A. Adande go back to the unlikely beginnings of one of the NFL’s most iconic franchises. From Curly Lambeau and the team’s unusual origin story to the community ownership structure that helped keep the Packers in Green Bay, they explore how a small Wisconsin city survived while other early NFL towns disappeared.
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Chuck Todd argues you don't need a poll to read the midterms — Republican behavior tells you everything. JD Vance is conceding things aren't going well, nobody's buying that it's Biden's economy anymore, and Tim Scott told the NRSC they're in "the fight for their lives," though his 2022 comparison misses that Democrats had Dobbs and Republicans have no equivalent in 2026. Todd's larger argument runs through Trump's UN speech, where the president justified seizing Venezuelan oil with "to the victor go the spoils" — a permission slip Todd says the rest of the world will happily accept. Between unilaterally inviting Putin to the G20, rolling out the red carpet for Xi, and a military stretched thin by Iran, America is now seen as an unreliable partner: one Trump presidency was an aberration, two changes the equation, and it'll take multiple presidents from both parties to win that trust back.
Then, Adam Brandon — who ran FreedomWorks for over a decade and now co-founded the Independent Leadership Council alongside Joe Manchin — joins the Chuck ToddCast to make the case that a handful of independents could break Washington's logjam. His argument: the parties have shrunk their tents, the blue dogs and moderate Republicans of the 1990s are gone, and in an era of slim majorities, ten independents in Congress could rewrite the rules when a new Congress is seated, install an apolitical speaker, and change every incentive overnight. He points to Montana — where the ILC-affiliated Independent PAC is now airing ads for Seth Bodnar, who needs roughly 210,000 votes to win — as proof the value of money in politics is starting to collapse. Plus: why Libertarians never break through, what younger voters actually want, and why burning the system down just leaves you living in ash.
Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and previews the upcoming weekend in college football.
Timeline:
(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
06:15 You don't need a poll — Republican behavior tells the story
11:00 Tim Scott's "fight for our lives" and the missing Dobbs equivalent
17:45 The diesel export ban and Trump's scramble for an Iran deal
23:15 Where Democrats are short on money — and which races are slipping
29:00 "To the victor go the spoils": Trump's UN speech on Venezuela
32:45 A stretched military and allies who no longer trust us
38:30 Xi's red carpet, Putin at the G20, and unilateralism's costs
44:00 Dismantling the system that made America richer and safer
53:00 Adam Brandon joins the Chuck ToddCast
54:00 Debt, deficits, and why independents lost faith in both parties
59:30 The vanishing middle: blue dogs, shrunken tents, and the 1990s
1:08:00 How ten independents could break the logjam in Congress
1:16:30 The collapsing value of money in politics — and the Montana test
1:23:00 Why Libertarians can't break through, and politics as entertainment
1:32:15 AI, job displacement, and where independents have the best shot
1:39:00 Rethinking the Partisan Voter Index and where to focus
1:43:45 What younger voters actually want from the system
1:50:15 The candidates ILC is backing — and why 2026 could change everything
1:56:00 Washington's warning, Lincoln's unity ticket, and a fragile democracy
2:02:00 Ask Chuck
2:02:15 Any parallels from Nixon’s career that Harris could take in future run?
2:05:45 What are the five issues a Dem majority should tackle in 2027?
2:10:45 Why should fans believe this version of college football is sustainable?
2:16:45 Could congress turn AI concerns into meaningful legislation?
2:20:00 If Dems retake congress, can they force WH to change course?
2:24:45 College football preview
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Adam Brandon — who ran FreedomWorks for over a decade and now co-founded the Independent Leadership Council alongside Joe Manchin — joins the Chuck ToddCast to make the case that a handful of independents could break Washington's logjam. His argument: the parties have shrunk their tents, the blue dogs and moderate Republicans of the 1990s are gone, and in an era of slim majorities, ten independents in Congress could rewrite the rules when a new Congress is seated, install an apolitical speaker, and change every incentive overnight. He points to Montana — where the ILC-affiliated Independent PAC is now airing ads for Seth Bodnar, who needs roughly 210,000 votes to win — as proof the value of money in politics is starting to collapse. Plus: why Libertarians never break through, what younger voters actually want, and why burning the system down just leaves you living in ash.

Timeline:
(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
01:00 Debt, deficits, and why independents lost faith in both parties
06:30 The vanishing middle: blue dogs, shrunken tents, and the 1990s
15:00 How ten independents could break the logjam in Congress
23:30 The collapsing value of money in politics — and the Montana test
30:00 Why Libertarians can't break through, and politics as entertainment
39:15 AI, job displacement, and where independents have the best shot
46:00 Rethinking the Partisan Voter Index and where to focus
50:45 What younger voters actually want from the system
57:15 The candidates ILC is backing — and why 2026 could change everything
1:03:00 Washington's warning, Lincoln's unity ticket, and a fragile democracy
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Chuck Todd argues you don't need a poll to read the midterms — Republican behavior tells you everything. JD Vance is conceding things aren't going well, nobody's buying that it's Biden's economy anymore, and Tim Scott told the NRSC they're in "the fight for their lives," though his 2022 comparison misses that Democrats had Dobbs and Republicans have no equivalent in 2026. Todd's larger argument runs through Trump's UN speech, where the president justified seizing Venezuelan oil with "to the victor go the spoils" — a permission slip Todd says the rest of the world will happily accept. Between unilaterally inviting Putin to the G20, rolling out the red carpet for Xi, and a military stretched thin by Iran, America is now seen as an unreliable partner: one Trump presidency was an aberration, two changes the equation, and it'll take multiple presidents from both parties to win that trust back. Finally, he answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment and previews the upcoming weekend in college football.
Timeline:
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
06:15 You don't need a poll — Republican behavior tells the story
11:00 Tim Scott's "fight for our lives" and the missing Dobbs equivalent
17:45 The diesel export ban and Trump's scramble for an Iran deal
23:15 Where Democrats are short on money — and which races are slipping
29:00 "To the victor go the spoils": Trump's UN speech on Venezuela
32:45 A stretched military and allies who no longer trust us
38:30 Xi's red carpet, Putin at the G20, and unilateralism's costs
44:00 Dismantling the system that made America richer and safer
50:30 Ask Chuck
50:45 Any parallels from Nixon’s career that Harris could take in future run?
54:15 What are the five issues a Dem majority should tackle in 2027?
59:15 Why should fans believe this version of college football is sustainable?
1:05:15 Could congress turn AI concerns into meaningful legislation?
1:08:30 If Dems retake congress, can they force WH to change course?
1:13:15 College football preview
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Chuck Todd digs into ProPublica's bombshell on Susan Collins, which details how her office steered millions in federal contracts to defense firm Navatek while her campaign operation pumped CEO Martin Kao's network for donations — sometimes cut within 24 hours of the defense spending bill clearing a Senate hurdle — and how the FBI's pay-to-play investigation died after Trump's purge of the bureau. Chuck’s argument is that the legality is precisely the point: Washington in 2026 is a legalized influence marketplace, Collins is no outlier, and what's needed is a post-Watergate-style transparency revolution — if money is speech, it shouldn't be allowed to hide.
Then, Anthony Scaramucci returns to the Chuck ToddCast with All the Wrong Moves, out September 22nd, which argues Trump is a symptom rather than the disease — the product of three decades of bipartisan mistakes: Clinton's China trade deal, Bush waging war while cutting taxes, and Obama's bailout that rescued Wall Street while leaving ordinary families behind. He and Chuck also revisit the private credit questions raised in the ToddCast's Lakers special report, with Scaramucci arguing risky lending simply migrated from banks to private markets and that Mark Walter is likely not an outlier. His predictions are blunt: Trump is effectively conviction-proof, and in Scaramucci's view will try to make tens of billions before pardoning himself and his family — which is why, he warns, if the country doesn't take care of its people, the pitchforks will come out.
Finally, Chuck presents his ToddCast Top 5 list of the worst issues a candidate can campaign on for the midterms and answers listeners’ questions in the “Ask Chuck” segment.
You can order All The Wrong Moves here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250437563
Timeline:
(Timestamps may vary based on advertisements)
00:00 Chuck Todd’s introduction
02:30 The ProPublica story and what it says about Susan Collins
07:00 The FBI investigation Trump's bureau shut down
08:15 The bigger story: how normal this kind of corruption has become
18:00 Crypto's $30 million play in Ohio and the threat of outside money
21:30 The transparency revolution we actually need
34:45 Iran waiting out the midterms, Mamdani, and Xi's visit
38:45 New Pew data on data centers — and where the money is going
44:30 AOC hints at 2028, and the GOP's Senate spending advantage
51:30 The Paramount settlement with California
59:45 "All the Wrong Moves" and the three decades that produced Trump
1:01:45 China, the wars, and a bailout that skipped the citizens
1:05:30 Is Mark Walter an outlier? Private credit and where the risk went
1:09:45 A looming financial crisis — and Trump facing a Democratic Congress
1:12:30 Conviction-proof: corruption, pardons, and the GOP's breaking point
1:14:30 No rule of law, desperate workers, and the pitchforks
1:16:00 How we made the wrong moves — and how he came back after January 6th
1:17:00 ToddCast Top 5 most unpopular campaign issues
1:17:45 #5 A candidate endorsed by Donald Trump
1:18:00 #4 Wanting to abolish ICE
1:18:30 #3 Supporting weapons and funding for Israel
1:18:45 #2 Supporting the war in Iran
1:19:15 #1 Supporting for building data centers
1:21:00 Ask Chuck
1:21:15 What prevents a journalist from pivoting during a TV interview?
1:25:15 Advice for helping with kidney stones
1:26:30 What factors are behind Kansas suddenly becoming competitive?
1:33:15 If you could ask Trump one question, what would it be?
1:35:30 Could a future congress pursue financial penalties for pardoned officials?
1:38:00 Shout out to the Nats
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